Many palms, one native: Which?

Swaying palms are virtually a visual shorthand for Hawaii, where local churches certainly don’t have to worry about supplies for Palm Sunday. But coconut palms (niu), date palms, bottle palms and traveler’s palms — just to name a few found in the islands– are not native to Hawaii: Some were brought by the early Polynesian settlers, others were later introductions.

Turns out Hawaii has only one endemic palm tree, or rather, one genus with a couple dozen species — some now quite rare — that developed in the islands and nowhere else. Among its ancient uses: the construction of seasonal fishing shrines.

Be the among the first three to e-mail Hawaii Insider the Hawaiian name for this palm, along with your street address, and I’ll send you a small Hawaii-themed prize. And tune into Hawaii Insider tomorrow (April 6) to learn more about this special plant — including where to see the widest variety of its species today.

UPDATE: This quiz has ended. Click here to see the Hawaii Insider post with the answers, follow-up story and winners.

Jeanne Cooper

Palm trees add a sense of Hawaiiana to the Four Seasons Resort Lana’i at Manele Bay.